Average New Car Payment Hits Record $777/Month as 84-Month Loans Surge

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23.9% of people who financed a new vehicle last quarter got an 84+ month loan.

The average monthly payment soared to a new record of $777, but many pay more.

People are putting less money down and financing an average of $44,156.

The average transaction price for a new vehicle is hovering around $50,000, so it comes as little surprise buyers are embracing longer loans. This has been playing out for awhile and Ram introduced a 10-year/100,000-mile limited powertrain warranty as CEO Tim Kuniskis noted nearly 80% of new truck loans exceed five years.

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However, five years is nothing as many shoppers are now turning to even longer loans. According to Edmunds , a record 36.5% of people who financed a new vehicle in the second quarter opted for a loan of 73 months or more. That’s over six years and the number has soared from 27.3% in 2016.

More: America’s $1.7 Trillion Auto Debt Is Driving Repos Back To Recession Levels

Even more surprisingly, 23.9% of financers signed up for loans lasting at least 84 months. That’s seven years and yet another record.

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Despite the fact that customers are embracing longer loans, the average monthly payment has soared to a new record of $777. That’s an all-time high for the third consecutive quarter and it means people are paying an average of $9,324 per year.

That’s a lot of money, but 20.3% of new vehicle financers opted for payments of $1,000 or more in the second quarter. That ties the all-time high and is up slightly from Q1.

New Car Financing

Q2 2026 Q2 2025 Q1 2026

Term 70.4 69.8 70.3

Monthly Payment $777 $756 $773

Amount Financed $44,156 $42,388 $43,899

APR 7 7.2 6.9

Down Payment $5,815 $6,433 $6,206

SWIPE

Given that monthly payments have soared to a new record, it’s not surprising to learn that the average amount financed has also hit a new all-time high. Buyers are taking on an average of $44,156 in debt, which is up $257 from the first quarter and $1,768 from a year ago.

If that wasn’t bad enough, people are putting less money down on their purchases. The average down payment dropped to $5,815 and that’s below the $6,206 in Q1 as well as the $6,433 last year. In fact, down payments now make up just 11.6% of the average total purchase price and that’s the lowest percentage in nearly six years.

Banks are making bank as the average lifetime interest payment has soared to a new record of $9,811. That’s up $195 from a year ago and the average annual percentage rate was 7% in the quarter.

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Used Car Financing

Q2 2026 Q2 2025 Q1 2026

Term 70.1 69.7 69.9

Monthly Payment $576 $559 $559

Amount Financed $30,414 $29,080 $29,314

APR 10.5 10.9 10.8

Down Payment $4,016 $4,092 $3,993

SWIPE

Used car buyers are also paying a ton as a record 6.3% of them opted for monthly payments of $1,000 or more. The average amount financed for a used vehicle also shot up from $29,080 last year to $30,414 in the second quarter. That’s enough to buy several brand-new vehicles including the Buick Envista , Chevrolet Trax, Nissan Kicks, and Toyota Corolla Cross – just to name a few.

Edmunds’ head of insights, Jessica Caldwell, said “The Q2 data perfectly illustrates the stark reality of today’s new-vehicle market: Affordability is such a massive hurdle that buyers are forced to stretch their budgets to the absolute limit just to get into a new vehicle.” She added “this is the new normal for new-car buyers” and noted “consumers will have to keep walking this financial tightrope” for the foreseeable future.

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